DIHOC?to supply 16,000 boots to Ghana Armed Forces

The Footwear Division of the Defence Industrial Holding Company (DIHOC) has received orders for the supply of 16,000 security combat boots to the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF).

Out of the total, 13,000 of the footwear would be handed to army personnel, while the remaining 3,000 would be given to personnel in the Ghana Navy.

The orders followed the ban on the importation of footwear for the GAF and President John Mahama’s call on security agencies to depend on the supply of boots from the DIHOC, which is jointly owned by the GAF and a Czech Republic-based company, Knights a.s., acting through its subsidiary, Knight Ghana Limited.

The Chief Executive Officer of Knight Ghana Limited, Dr Karl Laryea, who disclosed this to the Daily Graphic, said the Ghana Air force had also expressed interest for the supply of 5,000 boots for its personnel.

“Following the ban on the importation of military boots, it appears that the GAF are ready to order from DIHOC. The orders would empower the company to expand its operations and also equip management to increase its employment rate,” he said.

Operations boosted Dr Laryea observed that the orders from GAF would be a major boost for the company and also act as a reference for DIHOC to do business with countries such as Togo, Benin and Nigeria.

“The fact that GAF is wearing boots made by DIHOC footwear is enough to raise the credentials of the company to attract security agencies from other countries,” he said.

Asked when the boots would be delivered, Dr Laryea said since the leather for the manufacturing were yet to arrive from India, a 90-day period was agreed between the two institutions.

President’s policy statement President Mahama, on his visit to the factory on Friday, rolled out his plans to supply sandals from the DIHOC Footwear Company to deprived schools in the country.

The sandals would be in addition to the free distribution of uniforms to selected schools in the country.

The President directed other security agencies, including the Ghana Police Service and the Immigration Service, to follow the footsteps of the GAF in securing the supply of boots from DIHOC Footwear.